Saturday, 27 November 2010

I've been trying to stick to blogging about my favourite deviants over on deviantART every month but I haven't done so in ages! I promise to try harder as there are so many amazing artists I want to shout about! On this occasion, I will be shouting about*ravenskar.I first spotted her work back around January when the above piece, titled 'something like an astronomer' caught my eye as it was part of the Daily Deviations where pieces are chosen and featured. I loved the feisty look of this character and the flushes of pink in her hair. I also thought her hands looked great, which was always something I often struggled with when studying Art & Design at college, so I always appreciate it when other people get it so right!Next is 'dj goh goh' which was a commission, and the black and purple colouration was just so beautiful! Again, I loved the character which I later found out is a mix between a Go-Go dancer, cheerleader, DJ and my most favourite part, ninja!! I can completely see this even though it isn't even a full painting!And lastly, '400,000 hits' which ravenskar painted in celebration for the 400,000 hits to her deviantART page. I thought she was absolutely adorable and I'd love to see her as an animated character! If you look on ravenskar's page, you will see that she has a variety of drawing styles, but the ones I have featured on my blog are my most favourite!

Tuesday, 23 November 2010

I've always loved the idea of rings being used as pendants so decided to add some to my Etsy shop! The rings and chains are about 10-15 years old which my father left me as he used to make, buy and sell jewellery in his own shop. You can see and purchase them here!

Saturday, 20 November 2010

If you look through my Hair & Beauty category, you will notice how much Soap & Glory products I have been using, all completely bought by myself! When I first started buying them, there wasn't much, but I seem to be finding a new product each day! My newest one is the Glad Hair Day shampoo which I was very excited about using because Soap & Glory products smell so delicious...and I was not let down! It had a yummy, fruity smell which I assume is from the 'raspberry fruit vinegar' ingredient. It isn't bad for £5 which you get a tube of 250ml...but it is still about 50% more expensive than what I spend on standard shampoo of a similar amount and I wash my hair every day.However, the smell is super addictive, my hair is so soft and smooth after use and most importantly, my hair feels clean...there are no negative aspects in regards to the actual product that I will continue to use it! This won't be as expensive as I initially thought because I like to use about 4-5 different shampoos in a week (I find that my hair is in better condition if I don't stick to the same shampoo) so, as long as I don't buy another 'higher' priced shampoo, there shouldn't be much difference! I know it sounds like I am trying to convince myself to continue using it (maybe I am)...but if you try it, you would understand my dilemma!

Friday, 19 November 2010

I watched the much anticipated Clash of the Titans when it was released back in April (I know I know, this entry is SO late!) and thoroughly enjoyed it! I could not remember much of the original one as I had only ever watched it as a child so did not really have much to compare with. However, over two decades later, I'm sure there would be a lot of differences, especially with the effects! One of the first things that impressed me about the film, was the cast. Sam Worthington (Avatar), Liam Neeson (one of the most suited actors to play Zeus), Ralph Fiennes, Pete Postlethwaite, Polly Walker (loved her in 'Rome'), Jason Flemyng and more!

I definitely had my eye on the acting skills of one particular actress, GemmaAterton. I had never really understood the fuss about her being the next big actress from the UK. I had found her quite irritating in 'St Trinian's' and felt the same when she played Strawberry Fields in Quantum of Solace. However, my opinion of her completely flipped after watching her in Clash of the Titans, I thought she was a very convincing actress and that her role as Io was perfect for her.MadsMikkelsen as Draco was also brilliant, but then again I do always associate him with 'fighter' type roles which he consistently does a great job at.The thing I love most about remakes (although I hate remakes of current films that are perfectly fine as they are, such as 'The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo'!!) is to see how prominent characters are interpreted, and for Clash of the Titans, it had to be the Stygian Witches! They absolutely terrified me as a child, but I was glad to have felt amusement when I saw them in the new Clash of the Titans, instead of fear! In fact, I was rather humoured with my afterthought of them looking as though they were related to The Ephors from '300'.The main storyline is that Perseus wishes to destroy the Kraken, which is Hades' creation and Hades' had previously caused the death of his adoptive father, Spyros. However, by the end of the film where Perseus has a battle with the Kraken, I was left rather unsatisfied as not only did the Kraken look like a deformed Godzilla, but it was also very short. The most exciting parts of the film is when Perseus meets all these different creatures and monsters, my favourite being Medusa who I have always found interesting. I loved the way she looked in the film and actually later found out that she was portrayed by Natalia Vodianova (one of my favourite models)...I'll need to watch the film again to try and see how obvious this was!Overall, it was a great film with an excellent cast...anyone interested in Greek mythology will love this!

Thursday, 18 November 2010

I really wanted to watch this at the cinema when it came out several months ago but didn't get the chance to, so I was super excited to finally watch it on DVD!Daybreakers is set in 2019 where a plague causes most of the human population to turn into vampires. I don't think I have seen a film set along this idea before (and I want to watch ALL vampire films ever made!) so I thought it would be quite good, and it was.

Back to the plot, Ethan Hawke plays Edward who is a vampire hematologist and is under pressure to create an alternative to blood as humans have pretty much become extinct, therefore the vampires will eventually not have anything to consume!

There are three parts of the film that are most memorable. The first is when they are testing out a possible blood alternative which seems to work at first but then prompts the testee to literally explode. I was not expecting this to happen and it made me jump! The second is when a gargoyle-looking creature is the result of a vampire who has not been able to feed. I thought this was a great idea (instead of them simply withering away) and wished that they had a much bigger part to play in the film because they looked brilliant!The third is when the viewer is introduced to a possible cure for a vampire to become human - and again, I don't think I have come across this idea before in films. The cure is simply direct exposure to sunlight for a short time. Even though this idea is part clever, part ironic (as sunlight would eventually kill a vampire) and almost humorous, I felt that it should have been much harder!Overall, I felt that the film was great and if you enjoy vampire films, you will like this regardless of some obvious shortcuts in the storyline. The film rating is a 15, but I think they should have had more 'gargoyles' (to take over the entire city and to cause much more chaos!) and definitely more blood and gore to push it up to an 18.

Tuesday, 16 November 2010

As I sit here typing up my review on Soap & Glory's 'Clear Here' Oil Control Daily Moisture Lotion...I wonder why I ever bought it?! My skin is nowhere near oily, in fact it is dry/sensitive...this was completely an accidental purchase which goes hand-in-hand with the fact that I love the Soap & Glory brand so much that I wanted to try everything out! So, I think I must have only seen 'poreshrink' and 'skin perfector' which prompted me to buy it! For £8, it isn't bad if it does what it says, which unfortunately I have not had the pleasure in seeing for myself due to the wrong skin type - but I have high hopes. Although, when I did use it, I didn't really like the smell or the feeling of it on my skin, but as I mentioned - wrong skin type.I will be passing this onto my sister to use as it seems like it will suit her skin much better than mine especially with the 'mattifying' finish it may give as she is always blotting the oil off her skin which I think is ridiculous as she is only 14! Anyway, I will give an update on this product at a later date.

Sunday, 14 November 2010

I previously mentioned the London MCM Expo, which happened on the last weekend of October. I attended the event on the Saturday (with my little sister and my mother) and it has to be one of my highlights this year...I wanted to post my photos immediately but never got round to it until now! I mainly wanted to go to see costumes, check out any new art to add to my collection and to see what new computer games were out...and it was so much more exciting than I thought it would be. I actually felt like I was 10 years old again - and possibly acted it at some point of the day...which I will reveal later on.I was very curious to see how many people would be dressed up or shied away like myself (although I did wear a Star Wars t-shirt!!) but I was absolutely shocked at the amount of people who arrived in full costume, and shocked at how amazing they were!! The first characters we saw were from Star Wars which I later realised was most probably organised by the event as I saw Storm Troopers everywhere after that! I then came across Alien which looked excellent!I had a list of characters in my head that I desperately wanted to see and the Dragonball Z fighters was definitely one of the many! I saw a group of them within 10 minutes of leaving the station and as I shyly asked if I could take their photo, they were all so lovely and immediately got into their character stances which I was not expecting at all! I was so impressed and almost giddy about it!!Inside the venue, there were many gaming booths and I came across Dragonball: Raging Blast 2 which looked amazing!! I used to play a lot of games when I was younger, but working in Fashion as a full-time job completely takes over your life! But I am hoping to make some time for gaming soon as I really miss it!! If the queue wasn't so long, I would have waited to play Dragonball, it looked like the actual Anime, just in game form! I think that was probably the most negative thing about the event, there were not enough gaming booths and groups of people (teenage boys) were really hogging them! I'm pretty certain that they only came to play unreleased games for the entire day!This next person is dressed up as Noctis from Final Fantasy Versus XIII and I thought it was a great interpretation!I first saw these Victoriana girls hours before I took this photo of them but I was too shy to ask! I didn't want to miss the chance again when I saw them a second time, so asked for their photo which they seemed happy about and I thought they looked adorable together!Next is a guy from Portugal who won the Euro Cosplay competition! I didn't stay long enough to watch the competition which consisted of actual performances (I won't miss this next time!) but I had taken this photo of him before it started and I was sure he would win. There was a lot of work put into his costume as Cain Nightroad from Trinity Blood so he completely deserved it!You can't go wrong dressed as Domo, period.Next was another fantastic costume but I don't recognise the character, so if anyone knows, please enlighten me! I got frustrated with the guy hovering beside her but while I was preparing my photos for this blog entry, I think he was actually acting as a prop-holder for her!As I made my way through the venue, I spotted a booth that didn't have a crowd, so I had a proper look to see what the lack of fuss was about, and there was John de Lancie who I recognised as 'Q' from Star Trek! This was quite exciting as my boyfriend and I have been making our way through all the Star Trek series, so his character is still quite prominent to me...although it seemed like hardly anyone knew who he was, hence the empty booth! However, there were a few older people (possibly journalists) taking photos of him from a distance but I decided to ask him if I could take his photo as I thought it was quite rude to just take a photo while he is simply sitting there!Now this is the bit where I thought I behaved like a 10 year old because I asked if I could take a photo and he was very lovely and said I could...he then leant forward (I assume because when people ask for photos, they want to be in it as well...and to get an autograph?!), prompting me to step back (otherwise I wouldn't be able to get him in the frame), took two snaps, said thank you and ran off! Judging by the look on his face, I think he thought I was very strange and it must have been the fastest 'fan' meeting he has ever had! My 14 year old sister then told me off for being 'rubbish' and that I should have made conversation...which is completely true of course! The thing is, I wasn't starstruck at all, I've never been starstruck...but I guess this is because I live in London and I see celebrities all the time. I think it was simply because I wanted to be polite and get a photo of an actor who is in a program that I have been watching, end of!! Another actor who was sat next to John de Lancie was Tony Todd who I recognised but could not figure out where he was from. I later found out that he was also in Star Trek (as an older Jake Sisko and Worf's brother, Kurn) and several other films! Anyway, I felt so foolish with my meeting with John de Lancie, I wouldn't have dared go back to the booth!There were a couple of stalls selling Manga and this one had an abundance of them! My sister was in her element and we spent ages browsing! We finally left after about 15 minutes with some new books to read! Below was a delightful costume which again I don't recognise, so if anybody knows, please tell me as I'd love to see how accurate her costume was! She may have been one of the best as she literally looked like she jumped straight out of an anime!My sister spotted 'Joker' and started snapping away and I didn't realise (I can be very slow) that this 'Joker' character was playing Batman on the Wii! I thought this was hilarious and proceeded having a fit of giggles again. The guy seemed a bit embarrassed and stopped playing his game to pose for us, but my sister instructed him to continue with his game...and I get told that I'm bossy!Next are characters from Assassin's Creed which were stood in a triangle (there was a third character stood next to me) and moved very slowly as if they were about to attack each other, very dramatic!I think the Assassin's Creed gaming booth also had the longest queue, so there was no chance of me getting a go although it looked like fun!This Queen Amidala costume had to be one of my favourites! I spotted her from a distance and there was no room for me to be shy so I immediately asked for a photo to which she was delighted about and instantly got into her pose which was perfect!Ryuk from Death Note was another character who I really wanted to see and I saw plenty! However, I wasn't impressed enough to ask for a photo until I saw this guy as I was leaving the venue. He could easily portray Ryuk in a film and his pose was so spot on!! Ryuk is a death god who likes eating apples...I've probably made the anime sound incredibly rubbish but it is just amazing! Well, I actually haven't read the manga, but I've watched the film and it has to be one of the most unpredictable films I have ever watched!

Overall, I had a wonderful time at the event and will continue to attend every time it is on now! I have also learnt that I must buy tickets beforehand as we were waiting for an hour and a half in the queue! I would also interact a bit more, such as queuing to test a game out, attending the costume competition (I've seen videos of this and they looked amazing) and spending more time in the Comic part of the event. This was where artists were seated and I definitely rushed through it. There were also several artists offering to do a portrait of visitors which was something I really wanted to get done!!! I also did a bit of shopping which I will leave for another blog entry! I hope my photos make you want to attend the event in the future because you will be thoroughly surprised at how much you will enjoy yourself!

Saturday, 6 November 2010

Like most of the films I blog about, I wanted to watch 'Flashbacks of a Fool' when it was released a couple of years ago but never got round to it! So I have utilised my membership with LOVEFiLM to catch up on all films I have ever missed!

'Flashbacks of a Fool' is about Joe (played by Daniel Craig) who was a successful actor, but his drinking and drug-use halts his career from continuing. He receives a phone call from his mother informing him that his childhood friend has died, prompting Joe to reminisce about his past...which is when the viewer is then introduced to younger Joe, played by Harry Eden.I was quite impressed with Harry Eden's acting skills, and thoroughly quite surprised. I think this is the first time I have seen him, but he did a great job. I was also impressed with the fact that not only can Harry Eden act well, but he actually looks like a younger Daniel Craig! I definitely appreciate it when films do this well...and get incredibly annoyed when they don't!

Younger Joe is just like any other teenage boy and there is always that one girl who everyone fancies, Ruth. I was so glad that she was actually a 'nice' girl...because typically, the 'popular girl' is always a bit nasty! Ruth invites Joe back to her place and they find out that they have the same taste in music...which leads me onto my favourite part of the film, which you can watch via the video below! 'If there is Something' by Roxy Music is playing in the background while Ruth is applying make-up on Joe and they are both dressed up, I thought this was so cute! They then go into the living room where they dance and sing along to the best part of the song...this is where I think Felicity Jones (who plays Ruth) really shines! I don't think I'd ever heard the song before either until I heard it in the film, and it's been on my iShuffle ever since!I thought this was going to be the start of their relationship with lots more singing and dancing together, but the following evening when Joe is supposed to be meeting Ruth, he is lured into the home of his neighbour Evelyn, and they end up having sex. Joe arrives late meeting Ruth, where she spots love bites on his neck and storms out. There is a lot more that happens in the film including something dramatic and traumatising which explains why older Joe ended up so far away from home, which was something I pondered early on in the film.

Overall, a surprisingly good and unpredictable film with a great cast.

Wednesday, 3 November 2010

Although this product review is now quite irrelevant because London is getting colder and colder each day, I still wanted to review the Hei Poa Monoi Milk SPF 25 in hope that it can be useful to someone else in a much warmer and sunnier place! I bought this sunscreen a few months ago when London was absolutely baking and I wanted to try something different instead of the usual commercial products that I would usually buy. I loved the exotic-looking packaging which also gave it a sense of authenticity, along with the brand name which I had never come across until I was searching for sunscreens. The reference to 'milk' also won me over which I think is derived from when I was a child and had learned that Cleopatra would bathe in milk to preserve the beauty of her skin...and whether it is true or not, at that age, I believed everything!The next most important thing I look for with sunscreens is that I can spray it onto my skin, for ease and convenience...then of course comes the scent. Coconut was most prominent with sweet undertones and the 'milk' was easy to apply over my skin. This could potentially be my staple sunscreen and I am keen on trying out the other Hei Poa products such as the body butters and oils!

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Welcome to my blog! I am a full-time Designer in London for a fashion brand... but also have a whole load of other interests including making anything and everything - click on the huge SHOP sign above to check it all out.Also, feel free to use the tags below to navigate my blog posts!